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  • Subject: Fable: An Insult to RPGs Everywhere.
Subject: Fable: An Insult to RPGs Everywhere.
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When I first started playing Fable, I was amazed with the way it opened. Your town was attacked by bandits and your family was killed. The fighting system is good, the magic system is good, the leveling system is good. All the features are good, but when it comes to telling a story, it just doesn't cut it. This is a major insult to RPGs, which since the days of the SNES has been built on and thrived upon a great story telling experience. Fable feels and plays a lot like Zelda 64 and after, but there are many things Fable just didn't hit the mark on, the graphics being the only exception.

For instance, Zelda is known for its crafty dungeons. With no two being the same and far from being a hack and slash all the way through. While I wasn't expecting Fable to be another Zelda class game (it is actually close in gameplay to the Dark Cloud series on PS2), it severely fails to give the sense of freedom that was announced, and the dungeons in Fable are nothing to be proud of.

The story is another thing. In my opinion, this is the backbone of ANY good Role Playing game. It feels like they knew where they were going, but in efforts to make it accessible to all audiences they turned it into one that is dry, sparse, and short. I beat the game at 15 hours and after looking back on my experience this is what I said to myself. "Man, that was fun, seeing my Hero (who doesn't have a name) change into a big, bulking generic Hero." As far as story, what story? It opened with something that could be grand, but instead I am whisked away to the "Heroes Guild." They couldn't even try to give it a clever name, they just call it Heroes Guild, where the Heroes are "bred". All the people know about them and they appear at tournaments and pursue righteousness. /vomit

All in all, Fable was a decent game, but it feels highly watered down and I don't plan on playing a second time. Man I am glad I borrowed this from my friend and didn't waste my money.


[Edited on 9/28/2004 11:31:03 PM]

  • 09.28.2004 11:27 PM PDT
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Yeah, as big of an insult as it is, even Peasants Quest has a much deeper story line than Fable. It did start off well though. The story was suck, I mean, how could you not see any of that coming? I could flip a quarter, and figure out the entire story before it landed. And I'd still have more luck guessing the entire plot than guessing heads or tails.

I've said it before, Fable, and Project Ego, are two different games.

[Edited on 9/28/2004 11:37:47 PM]

  • 09.28.2004 11:37 PM PDT
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Maybe if the devs had played Morrowind. They must have feared daunting the crowd, and I HATE having my hand held throughout the entire game.

Fable is the RPG for the lesser mind.

  • 09.29.2004 12:08 AM PDT
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It was all so transparent. There were no consequences, at all, for your actions.

Kill the town, or kill the Bandits?

Whoa, slow down there, this complicated choice just gave me brainfreeze.

I'm paraphrasing, but this was the most disgusting quote in an RPG, ever.
"You need silver to kill the white balverine, and complete the quest. Oh look, here's some. Take it."
Aagh. I killed him just for saying that.
Careful, the player may have to solve a problem. Duh..No think....Smash. Duh.

[Edited on 9/29/2004 12:19:22 AM]

  • 09.29.2004 12:18 AM PDT
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Posted by: KiLLyourTV
Maybe if the devs had played Morrowind. They must have feared daunting the crowd, and I HATE having my hand held throughout the entire game.


I agree completely.

  • 09.29.2004 12:19 AM PDT
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Slaughter a whole town of people, wait 10 minutes and they are magically back and all your fines are lifted.

I guess the only consequences are being thrown in jail, but you can't help that since it is "story" shiver driven.

  • 09.29.2004 12:20 AM PDT
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I found it strangely perplexing how the 'Heroes guild' had no qualms about raising villans.

  • 09.29.2004 12:22 AM PDT
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In a more postive note, a new Elder Scrolls is slated for the Next Gen. I still can't picture games like Morrowind being possible sans Harddrive.

  • 09.29.2004 12:23 AM PDT
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Posted by: SurgeK
I found it strangely perplexing how the 'Heroes guild' had no qualms about raising villans.


No, the true definintion of heroism and righteousness is how many people are jealous of you, and your possessions. Not your actions, that's silly, and might make the devs end up doing more work.

[Edited on 9/29/2004 12:26:56 AM]

  • 09.29.2004 12:26 AM PDT
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This review does a good job of breaking down the games faults.

  • 09.29.2004 12:51 AM PDT
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Posted by: KiLLyourTV
This review does a good job of breaking down the games faults.


Thanks for the review, and your thread. I've been waiting for a review that’s not sugar coated. While I’m sure that review was overly harsh, it saved me about 50 dollars.

  • 09.29.2004 3:05 AM PDT
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Well that's your opinion, of coarse i enjoyed the game, and I agree it was ALOT like zelda, but if you are trying to convince others that this gamed sucked, try not comparing it to some of the best games ever. (Zelda, morrowind, etc).

  • 09.29.2004 3:44 AM PDT
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Posted by: KiLLyourTV
When I first started playing Fable, I was amazed with the way it opened. Your town was attacked by bandits and your family was killed. The fighting system is good, the magic system is good, the leveling system is good. All the features are good, but when it comes to telling a story, it just doesn't cut it. This is a major insult to RPGs, which since the days of the SNES has been built on and thrived upon a great story telling experience. Fable feels and plays a lot like Zelda 64 and after, but there are many things Fable just didn't hit the mark on, the graphics being the only exception.

For instance, Zelda is known for its crafty dungeons. With no two being the same and far from being a hack and slash all the way through. While I wasn't expecting Fable to be another Zelda class game (it is actually close in gameplay to the Dark Cloud series on PS2), it severely fails to give the sense of freedom that was announced, and the dungeons in Fable are nothing to be proud of.

The story is another thing. In my opinion, this is the backbone of ANY good Role Playing game. It feels like they knew where they were going, but in efforts to make it accessible to all audiences they turned it into one that is dry, sparse, and short. I beat the game at 15 hours and after looking back on my experience this is what I said to myself. "Man, that was fun, seeing my Hero (who doesn't have a name) change into a big, bulking generic Hero." As far as story, what story? It opened with something that could be grand, but instead I am whisked away to the "Heroes Guild." They couldn't even try to give it a clever name, they just call it Heroes Guild, where the Heroes are "bred". All the people know about them and they appear at tournaments and pursue righteousness. /vomit

All in all, Fable was a decent game, but it feels highly watered down and I don't plan on playing a second time. Man I am glad I borrowed this from my friend and didn't waste my money.

While Fable is definetly not FFX, its still a great game that has amazing graphics, awesome gameplay, astounding good/evil system. Plus u can get married, get drunk, slaughter anybody in your sight, and Particepate in mini-games and side quests, I give Fable 9.1 out of 10.

[Edited on 9/29/2004 5:50:40 AM]

  • 09.29.2004 5:50 AM PDT
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Fable didn't seem, to me, like a game in its own right. What I see is an introduction to a new RPG genre. Its design opened the doors to newer and better RPG's. Though it didn't do much on its own, it's what it allowed to happen that I like.

  • 09.29.2004 6:25 AM PDT

They call me phat for a reason....

..Elites rule..

Posted by: ObbiQuiet
Fable didn't seem, to me, like a game in its own right. What I see is an introduction to a new RPG genre. Its design opened the doors to newer and better RPG's. Though it didn't do much on its own, it's what it allowed to happen that I like.


I completely agree with you. The fact that this game wasnt at all what we expected it to be is pretty well seen. But it did open some new doors for future fully interactive RPG's such as Zelda or Morrowind. Like the the aging of characters even though i thought it was stupid that you age by ganing levels while eveyone else stayed the same age, or more importantly the expressions and interaction with the NPC's.

The fact that you can fart to tell someone off is the funniest thing ive ever done. After the second time though it really got old like most of the game. Maybe in the future theyll turn this franchise into a true competitor of the really great RPG's, or maybe theyll never make another. Either way well just have to wait and see.

  • 09.29.2004 9:36 AM PDT
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i have never played it but if it is like the way kill your tv told it then i might not get it.

[Edited on 9/29/2004 9:51:54 AM]

  • 09.29.2004 9:51 AM PDT
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It has good gameplay but it is way too short, I beat the entire game in under 10 hours. Also it is probably the easiest game I have ever played. They tell you everything to do and everywhere to go, none of the "bosses" if the can even be called that are difficult and there is no real chance of you dying. I beat it using one of the lower level meele weapons and the bow they give you at the first.

  • 09.29.2004 9:55 AM PDT
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Yeah, Fable is definitly not the best RPG ever, or even the best on Xbox. But it is still a good game.

More ability to explore and more stuff to do/find/see, and better character aging would help make the game better. The story is also a weak point, and could use alot more work.

Fable does do some things well though; the character customization and interaction is cool, but I would have liked to be able to pick my own character. The good/evil thing works well too. The graphics and music are very good.

If I reviewed it, I'd give Fable a... 7.5 out of 10

  • 09.29.2004 10:06 AM PDT
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Wy how dare you. I'll remove you at once!

  • 09.29.2004 10:25 AM PDT
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Posted by: ObbiQuiet
Fable didn't seem, to me, like a game in its own right. What I see is an introduction to a new RPG genre. Its design opened the doors to newer and better RPG's. Though it didn't do much on its own, it's what it allowed to happen that I like.


I agree.

  • 09.29.2004 10:42 AM PDT
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It's not supposed to have a very deep story line. That's not the point. The point is to decide if you are good or evil.

  • 09.29.2004 2:10 PM PDT
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Posted by: ObbiQuiet
Fable didn't seem, to me, like a game in its own right. What I see is an introduction to a new RPG genre. Its design opened the doors to newer and better RPG's. Though it didn't do much on its own, it's what it allowed to happen that I like.


I didn't see anything that was new and original about this game besides the Hero changing.

  • 09.29.2004 11:09 PM PDT

Posted by: ObbiQuiet
Fable didn't seem, to me, like a game in its own right. What I see is an introduction to a new RPG genre. Its design opened the doors to newer and better RPG's. Though it didn't do much on its own, it's what it allowed to happen that I like.


I agree with Obbi... for the most part:)

As I see it, Fable was built for a different crowd than that of the traditional RPG. Many gamers just don’t/won’t sit there for hours (exaggeration) interacting with NPCs in order to understand why they can’t move on to the next section of the game. Fable, while short in comparison to most RPGs, has a good flow. I never found myself becoming frustrated, or feeling that retreat glee one experiences after playing a new game for a few hours.

What the game lacks in story, and it is lacking, is more than made up for in the good vs. evil, combat, and NPC/societal interaction systems. Yes, none of these systems are complicated in nature, but that’s what’s so brilliant about them. Unlike most RPGs, which require one to invest hours upon hours in before seeing any kind of change to the character/s and world, there really is a great deal of “freedom” to change your hero and the world that surrounds him. This is rewarding to the player in that your hero’s actions and there implications to the game societal structure are palpable throughout the entire game. The combat system is so much more enjoyable than that of any other RPG I’ve played in recent years, the exception being KOTOR. As far as I’m concerned, these are areas where Fable excels over the “traditional” RPG. It’s also worth noting that the areas Fable excels in are the same areas traditional RPGs tend to lack quite a bit in . Fable should be given credit for bringing needed change to the genre, which is sure to bring new people and innovations.

In the end, I agree that a RPG should always have a compelling story, and Fable scores low in this area. However, when there are so many other good aspects to the game, I feel that writing Fable off for the feeble minded is an inaccurate representation:-)

-Eagle 117

[Edited on 9/30/2004 8:26:39 AM]

  • 09.30.2004 8:22 AM PDT